Illusions Of What Could Never Be
by chaotic-enigma
Summary: 3 years after Meteor and Tifa is trying to put her life back together, but what she doesn't know is Meteor is only the beginning. New alliances and old friendships are put to the test to take on a threat that has power to rival the Ancients.
1. Shots, Shots, Shots

_*Author's Note_

_Hey thanks for checking out my story! It's a bit of a love story tied in with some stupid humour that molds into a dark and twisty dramatic epic.. little bit of everything and I have huge plans for this story (including a possible sequel) so if you stick around for a few chapters it might end up being totally different than what you except. And as for the Final Fantasy 7 universe it takes place 3 years after Meteor with NO Advent Children stuff occurring... it's pretty much Canon to the original game. Love or hate please review! It makes me feel warm and cozy inside. Enjoy!_

_Ps. The formatting here drives me nuts. It won't let me put any extra spacing to separate sections of the story so I apologize for any annoying format issues._

The Northern Continent was a place that housed many horrors of a not so distant time for a few people. To others, everything above the town of Icicle Inn (the northernmost populated area) was a wasteland of snowy plains, sharp mountainous ranges and a massive crater that was at least 1000 years old. Nobody adventured up there because as far as everybody was concerned, there was nothing up there. If anybody were to find themselves up there they would discover an absolute silence that would create a feeling of suffocation that only a forest in winter can bring. Naturally blizzards would come and go that would stir up such a storm that even the fiercest of creatures would take shelter for days on end waiting for it to pass, but the stillness would always return. It was the type of quiet that was broken only by the odd breaking of a twig by a creature or a loud BANG of a tree exploding from the cold. Today however, an alien sound filled the air as a helicopter tore through the silence.

The pilot was a brash young man in his mid-twenties while his co-pilot was older and much more composed. In the back a young woman with blonde hair sat typing away on a laptop that rested on her legs. Her only other movement was a quick rolling of the eyes every once in a while at the antics of the pilot. She was about to berate him for the latest inappropriate joke he had just finished telling when all the noise in the copter died away without warning. For a brief second the same stillness outside had infiltrated the inside of the cockpit.

"What the fuck!" Was all the woman heard before she felt the copter suddenly lurch sideways throwing her against the side. She felt her head smash against the window, blood immediately rushing into her eyes. Shakily she was able to wipe enough of the red liquid out of her eyes just in time to see the swirling snow rush past the now-bloody window as the helicopter spun wildly out of control before darkness overtook her.

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A lone figure stood by the edge of a pool clutching his head in pain. Voices swirled around him as he tried desperately to sift through them searching for the one he knew, the one he would never forget, the one he refused to forget. He knew she was here somewhere; he could feel it in his heart that she wouldn't be anywhere else but he had no idea it would be so hard. There were so many voices that were all telling him different things that confused him and slowly wore him down. All he knew was that he just needed _her_. If he could find _her_ then it wouldn't matter how confused or tired he was because _she_ would make it all better. _She_ would make it okay again.

This was the only truth he knew for sure, and so he would continue to sit here, through the pain, until she was found. One couldn't live without their heart, and so it would be futile for him to leave because he had lost his heart a long time ago and he knew it was somewhere here. And so he would wait.

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Icicle Inn was a small cozy village within the Northern Mountains. Its inhabitants were kind to all who passed through their town, and were always helpful and considerate to one another. It's mountainous location and snowy peaks all year long made it a popular vacation spot. Because it didn't have a tourist "season" (due to its continuous snowfall), it was never overcrowded with skiers and snowboarders; instead there was a steady influx of visitors which kept the town from going under despite its remote location. It was the perfect place to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life. For Tifa Lockhart, it was the perfect place to start a new life.

She had taken over ownership of the local bar and renamed it after the bar she had operated in Sector 7: "Seventh Heaven". Since moving here she had been taken in by the people of the village as one of their own, sensing that she needed a place to call home where she felt comfort and love especially since it had been a long time since Tifa had called anywhere "home". Three years had passed since the world she had known and loved had been balancing tediously on the brink of destruction, three years since her and her group of misfit friends had saved the world from its extinction, three years since she had seen the man she loved, and three years since she failed to save him from himself.

Nanaki, a furry red catlike beast, had said that his grief and burdens were not her responsibility. Barret Wallace, the man who had always watched over her like a father, had said he was an asshole for abandoning Tifa like he did. The dark and mysterious Vincent Valentine had said that he had lost himself and it was his choice, and no one else's, to find himself again if he desired to. Reeve, who controlled the toy-like stuffed animal Cait Sith, had said she had to let him go because waiting for a man who was chasing ghosts would only lead to heartbreak. Cid Highwind, surprisingly, had said she needed to stop watching the ground awaiting his footsteps and instead look to the sky because that's where the freedom from her past would be found. She had never known the crass pilot to speak so poetically before, but he understood the cost of waiting on a dream. They all did.

Yuffie Kisaragi, on the other hand, had her own brand of healing. Unfortunately for Tifa, she usually suffered from it the morning after.

"Come on Teef, it's only one more shot!"

"Yuf, you know I don't do tequila."

"But it's the spice of life!"

"..."

"At least pour yourself another draft."

"Yuffie, I really shouldn't..."

"Teef. We've been over this. One of the perks of owning a bar is drinking for free. And a perk of being your friend is also drinking for free. So let's drink. Together. For free. Look, Cole has got you covered for the night, and if you drink that shot, maybe have another, and pour that draft that's calling your name maybe, just maybe you'll actually pursue his advances for once which'll make both of you happy. Lord knows you need to get laid."

"YUFFIE!"

"Just sayin'."

"Yeah well I still don't think it's right for me to get shit-faced in front of my customers..." Yuffie grabbed her by the shoulders and looked her square in the eye.

"Tifa. You need to loosen up and stop putting everyone else's needs before your own. You really think these old farts will care? You live in the most laid back town around, more so than Costa de Sole and that's saying something. You know that banana hammocks are actually encouraged there? Ugh. Anyways. If anything you'll show the people of this town that you're finally letting go. And they'll love that, they worry about you, you know? Ever since-"

"Okay okay," Tifa sighed, "hand over that shot." With one fluid motion she downed the shot with the grace of one who knew her way around alcoholic drinks. Grimacing she shot a glance at Yuffie and growled, "And I'm waking up in my own bed tonight right? Alone?" Yuffie snickered.

"Aww, but he's so cute and corruptible..."

"Yuffie..."

"And innocent and pure..."

"Yuffie..."

"Fine, fine." Yuffie sighed. She raised her glass and toasted, "To Tifa, who has the largest breasts on Shiva's green planet, but never uses them."

"YUFFIE!"

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Tifa woke the next morning to a pounding headache and an angry stomach. "Wonderful..." she moaned. She lay still for a moment in an attempt to relax her head, but as she did she became acutely aware of another's heavy breathing nearby.

"Ahhhhh!" She yelped as she lunged out of bed.

"Good morning," Cole said cheerfully as though nothing was out of the ordinary as he lay on her bed.

"Cole? What are you doing here? In my bed? In the morning... I ... oh no..." Tifa sputtered turning bright red. Cole stared at her for a few more seconds then burst out laughing. Tifa narrowed her eyes. "Oh shut up! Obviously you're enjoying this, but I don't even remember... I... "She trailed off as Cole started to get a hold of himself.

"Relax, relax. It's a joke. Yuffie said she's pay me 200 gil if I crawled into your bed this morning to make it seem like... well... you know..." a small blush started to spread across his cheeks. Tifa just stared at him. "She's already gone you know, Yuffie. Had some Wutaian business to take care of." She snorted.

"Yeah right. She just didn't want to be anywhere within my reach after I woke up. Now, if you'll excuse me, my hangover is reaching the point of puke or sleep, and I'd _really_ like to go back to sleep right now. Alone, thanks." Cole smiled.

"No problem Tifa. And it was only a joke; you know I'd never do anything to hurt you."

"I know. But at this moment martial-arting your ass out of my bed is quite tempting, so I'd take my leave if I were you."

"Haha, okay." Cole slid out of her bed, left the room and shut her door leaving her to her peace.

As Tifa crawled back under the covers her thoughts drifted to the short hyper girl that she had really begun to grow fond of. When Yuffie had first joined Avalanche she seemed to be nothing more than a thieving, spoiled brat whose motives for fighting against Sephiroth were unclear, especially since she appeared to just be along for the ride. Well, that and attempting to steal the groups materia whenever she got the chance. But something had changed after she had witnessed Aeries' death. Overnight she seemed to mature and focus on the gigantic task at hand. Yuffie had then proved herself beyond her capabilities and won a soft spot in everyone's hearts, even Barret's though he would never admit that he'd taken a liking to the girl.

She knew that the young ninja had grown very affectionate towards her. Tifa guessed that Yuffie's lack of family in her life had caused her to view her as a sister of sorts, which Tifa didn't mind at all. To be honest though, she was surprised that the ninja had spent so much time with her after the final battle. Tifa figured that she would have gone off on some wild adventures on her own but every other week or so she could expect Yuffie to show up at her door and stay anywhere from three days to a full week. She knew that the young ninja worried about her, just like everyone else did, so Tifa graciously accepted the company; even if it led to mornings like this once in a while. It was worth it.

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It was about five o'clock by the time Tifa crawled out of bed again. She was relieved to discover her hangover was practically gone, especially since she had to work that evening. Tifa loved her job and the familiar atmosphere of a tavern had allowed her to settle in to her new town quicker than she thought she would. After a shower and a small dinner she headed down the now familiar street to the bar.

"Hey Teef, feelin' better now?" Cole asked when Tifa walked in. She grinned sheepishly.

"Yeah, thanks. Has it been busy today?"

"Oh, just a few tourists, but you know the regulars will be in soon."

"Of course," she replied. "You can head home now, enjoy your evening Cole."

"Thanks Teef, you too."

By midnight the bar had cleared out, even though Tifa always stayed open until at least one. This was her favourite time of the night. The empty chairs and quiet room always gave her a sense of peace and comfort. As she wiped the tables down her thoughts drifted to the last alone time her and Cloud had experienced together.

_They were at the Northern Crater. Everyone else had gone home to be with their loved ones and as far as Cloud and Tifa knew they might never return. With the silence of the wasteland ahead of them engulfing them, he spoke._

_"What are you going to do Tifa?" Tifa had looked at him with a confused and hurt look on her face._

_"Did you forget? I'm... all alone. I don't have anywhere to go." She paused. "Everyone is gone."_

_"Yeah, we don't have anyone or anywhere to go home to."_But I'm right here,_Tifa had thought to herself. Instead, out loud she said,_

_"You're right. But I'm sure someday they'll come back. Don't you think?"_

_"Hmmm... I wonder...? Everyone has an irreplaceable thing they're holding on to, but this time our opponent..." he trailed off. Tifa, however, didn't hear the end of what he'd said._Irreplaceable thing_, she thought,_that's you..._Tifa decided this was it; this was her moment to tell Cloud he was her irreplaceable thing. There was such a slim chance they would survive what lay ahead that she had nothing to lose anyways. Her hands trembled as she spoke._

_"But... but that's ok, even if no one comes back," she took a deep breath. "As long as I'm with you... as long as you're by my side... I won't give up, even if I'm scared." She didn't dare turn around to look at him._

_"Tifa..." She waited with baited breath, but he said nothing more. She looked down._

_"No matter how close we are... we were far apart... before this." Tifa was referring to when Aeries was with them and how their relationship used to be. "But when we were in the Lifestream surrounded by all those screams of anguish... I... thought I heard your voice." The time the two had spent in the Lifestream was the most intensely personal trial they had faced. Through Tifa's guidance Cloud had managed to crack through the phony memories he had lived and breathed since the reactor incident at Nibelheim. He had finally accepted the real version of himself with Tifa's help. She had hoped that with his new confidence and reality check he would realize that it had been Tifa all along who had been there every step of the way supporting him and loving him. But his attitude towards her hadn't changed and it crushed her._

_Tifa could feel the tears welling up. She was glad her back was to him because she never cried. She continued._

_"You probably don't remember this, but deep in my heart I heard you calling my name... or... at least, I though t I did." She still didn't turn around. A few seconds passed then Cloud spoke quietly._

_"Yeah, at that time I thought I heard you calling me. You were calling me back from the stream of consciousness in the Lifestream. After all, I promised that if anything were to happen to you, I would come to help." Tifa was silent, a thousand thoughts raced through her head. She wanted to try to express her love for him again, but she already had her moment and he had said nothing. A person's heart could only crack so many times. So instead she spoke quietly._

_"Cloud? Do you think they stars can hear us? Do you think they see how hard we're fighting for them?" He seemed taken aback by the conversation change._

_"I dunno, but... whether they are or not we still have to do what we can, and believe in ourselves, and someday we'll find the answer, right Tifa? That's what I learned from you in the Lifestream."_But what if it's not the answer you're hoping for..._she thought. Tifa sighed,_

_"Yeah, that's right." Silence._

_"Hey... Tifa?" The change in the tone of his voice made her turn around. Slowly he walked towards her. "I... there's a lot of things I wanted to talk to you about. But now that we're together like this..." Cloud reached up and brushed a few strands of hair out of her eyes. Her skin burned at the touch of his hand sending shivers down her spine. She could feel her heart yearn for him as he slowly closed the gap of space between them. Her legs trembled as she gazed into his glowing eyes and suddenly she felt naked beneath his stare as though her very soul was being revealed to him. "I don't know what I really wanted to say..." He paused and cupped her cheek, his eyes burning with desire as though a light switch had turned on. His eyes roamed over her lean frame, her long strong legs as though he was seeing her for the first time. "I guess..." Cloud's voice turned low and he murmured, "nothing's changed at all... kind of makes you want to laugh..."_

_"Cloud..." Tifa breathed. She had imagined this moment so many times. She had imagined running her hands through that spiky head of hair, feeling his muscular body beneath her hands... "Words... aren't the only thing that tells people what they're thinking." With that Cloud leaned in and captured her lips in his, and her world drifted away._

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_"It's almost dawn." Tifa awoke with a start._

_"H... huh?"_

_"Sorry did I wake you? It's almost dawn Tifa," Cloud said quietly, his mind somewhere else._

_"Oh... umm... g, good morning... Cloud," Tifa stammered, blushing at the realization of her predicament as memories of last night came rushing back to her. She sighed. "Give me a little longer, just a little longer... this day will never come again, so let me have this moment." Cloud looked down at her and nodded almost guiltily._

_"Yeah okay, this is probably the last time we'll have together." She didn't hear him as she had already drifted off to sleep again._

Looking back, Tifa had believed at the time that neither of them would survive the final battle and so there was no need for discussion about what had transpired the night before and what it might have meant in the future. She had gone into the fight feeling happy despite the impending doom because Cloud really did love her, his actions the night before had shown that. She also had believed that in the slim chance they did come out alive that they would be together, finally, for good.

The final battle had come and gone and all of them survived it. But when the dust settled and everyone went off in their respected ways, Cloud had disappeared. Tifa had searched for him from town to town to no avail. She found herself at Icicle Inn when she finally gave up. There was only one other place she hadn't gone to, but because it was where Aeries had died she couldn't bring herself to go. She refused to believe that he'd be there, mourning over the loss of her because he loved Tifa didn't he? Yuffie had tried to drill it into her head that Cloud only used her that night to "get some", but she refused to listen. As the years went by with no sign from him, she lost more and more of the spark of life she used to have. Yuffie had tried to help her, but even nights like last night Tifa participated in only for the sake of Yuffie. She knew Yuffie was trying so hard, so she did her best at faking being happy. She knew Yuffie could see right through Tifa's facade, but they both pretended that Tifa was really okay. She would never give up on that spiky haired boy. She believed that one day he would show up at her door and all would be well again. Tifa knew it was pathetic but he was her drug. Even when he wasn't there he still continued to take from her.

The sound of the bar door opening startled her out of her thoughts. _That's weird_, she thought, _no one ever comes in for a drink this late._ She walked out of the kitchen and into the sitting area where she saw a man dress from head to toe in travelling gear. He was completely covered except for a pair of goggles on his face. She couldn't help it.

"Cloud?" She blurted out. The man's head shot up and locked eyes with her. His icy blue dots burned through hers before his knees buckled and he collapsed in a heap on the floor.


	2. Chapter 2

Tifa approached the still figure with unease, embarrassed she automatically called out his name because it clearly wasn't him. Years of fighting with Avalanche had taught her to treat any unknown situation with caution, even in the innocent town of Icicle Inn. She gently nudged the person's boot with her foot but found there to be no response. She knelt down and rolled them onto their back.

It was a man, tall and lean with a black jacket and black pants that were covered in snow and soaking wet. A hood and scarf, as well as the goggles she had noticed before, covered his face. She could tell he was freezing as he involuntarily shook.

Tifa got up and ran to the storage closet to grab some extra blankets and brought them near the fireplace. She returned to the man and, by grabbing him under the arms, somehow managed to drag him by the fire. She sat down beside him and, slowly, removed the hood and scarf that continued to hide the man's identity. With the goggles finally taken off his face was finally revealed.

His face was swollen and bloody from a large gash that ran across his eye and down his cheek. He had short hair that was streaked with blood which added to the intensity of the fire red colour of it. There was something strangely familiar about him despite his mauled and swollen face. Nonetheless she began to strip his wet jacket off of him and cover him with blankets in an attempt to bring his body temperature back up.

Tifa let him be by the fire while she went and grabbed some first aid supplies. She returned to her guest and slowly began to tend to his wounds. She was troubled by the familiarity of the man. He almost looked like her old childhood boyfriend Johnny from Nibelheim with his fierce red hair, but why would he be here, laying on her floor in Icicle Inn of all places? The last she had heard he had headed to Wall Market in Midgar with his music, but they had never crosses paths. Cloud had muttered something about running into him once or twice but he never explained any further. The man shifted his body and moaned then lay still again.

It was at this time that Tifa cursed her decision to give all her materia to Yuffie to take back to Wutai with her. In the wake of the meteor disaster many people had shied away from excessive use of materia fearing that the planet had unleashed meteor on them as a punishment for letting the planet slowly die while the Lifestream withered away from Mako usage. The general public had no knowledge of Sephiroth, Jenova, or anything of the true crisis of the planet. Many towns such as Icicle Inn, Kalm and Rocket Town had either minimized or altogether abandoned the use of manufactured materia. The planet was in a dire state after using an enormous amount of energy to heal itself after meteor's destruction. To continue to use the vast amount of planet energy that humans had been using for decades would definitely kill the planet off in a few short years. Sometimes all it seems to take is a catastrophe for the eyes of people to open to the changes needed to be made for their lives to continue.

Tifa didn't miss the materia all that much. She had it all with her when she first arrived, but it had made the villages weary of her since the materia represented fighting and death in their eyes. Once she had gotten rid of it she found that everybody became considerably warmer. Somehow not having any around made life much simpler and she enjoyed it. Very few times had she found she was in need of it, but this was the first time another's life had depended on it.

She grabbed her PHS on the table beside her and dialled Yuffie's number. If anybody would have any cure materia on them it would be her.

"Sup?" Yuffie answered casually.

"Yuffie I-"

"I'm sorry about the joke! Really! I didn't even remember how it came about until Cole called me today. And I'm out 200 gil now! That cheaky bastard took advantage of poor drunk me AND took advantage of poor drunk you. I'll kill him, I'll use his testicles as ping pong balls... they're probably small enough, I'll.."

"Yuffie please, not now. Listen, I need your help." In a rush Tifa quickly explained the appearance of the strange man.

"When are you coming back this way? I'd ask Cid but he's not due to make another delivery for another three weeks, and I know he won't leave early when the baby is on the way. I don't know what else to do."

"Yeah, I hear you, but what's so important about this guy... can't you just drop him off at the healers? So he looks like Johnny... so what? That assface treated you worse than Cloud has."

"Well I can't just leave a stranger in critical condition who wandered into my bar to die. You know me better than that, I wouldn't even do that if they ended up being my mortal enemy. I just... feel something here. I have to do something. Please." Yuffie was quiet for a moment.

"Ah hell. A man stumbles into your bar and you gotta save his life... the way your love stories work he's gonna end up being your soulmate. After all, you're the girl who always saves the guy right? I'd never forgive myself if this one slipped through. I'm on my way to Midgar to do some stuff for my dad. Midgar will have some materia for sure. I'll return as soon as I can. Probably in about 5 days...it's the best I can do, sorry Teef."

"It's okay, that's fine. Thanks Yuf, I owe you one."

"Just pay me back in alcohol. And I get to be your maid of honour." Click! Tifa rolled her eyes. Trust Yuffie to somehow always manage to involve Tifa's love life in every situation she could. Movement caught her eye. She knelt down beside him and placed her cool hand against his forehead. He was burning up.

"Hey... it's okay," she said in a soothing voice. "You're going to be okay. Everything is going to be okay. Some cure materia is going to be here in a few days... Just hang in there."

Tifa stayed by his side all night. She had been pouring water in his mouth and kept sponging down his hot skin with a cloth. She had examined him further throughout the night and discovered that his arm was bent at such an unnatural angle that it had to be broken. In addition to that his breathing was very ragged and uneven which led her to believe that he had either internal bleeding or broken ribs. He had sure taken a hell of a beating, that's for sure.

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The next morning she called the local healer Eric to see if he would come and take a look at the man. Eric's arrival put Tifa's worry at ease. He confirmed that there were at least 2 broken ribs but no internal bleeding. He set the broken arm and taped the man's ribs up, as well as wrapped his face and head in gauze in order to bring the swelling down and begin to heal the gashes on his face. Other than that there was nothing else that could be done. Eric reassured her that as long as she kept cleaning his cuts to prevent infection and kept his fever down there was no reason to worry for the short-term. Once the materia arrived it would clear up any unknown injuries and speed his healing. He was stable for now, but only because of Tifa's care. Without it he would have either died from hypothermia, or his fever would have risen dangerously high which would have possibly resulted in long term effects.

Tifa sat by the warm fire in the bar relishing the silence. Although her quarters were upstairs she preferred to hang out in the lounge area in the bar itself at night. The atmosphere of the room made everything seem a little less lonely, especially tonight when she had a guest in her house.

Tifa sighed. "Fuck this loneliness," she said outloud. "I'm surrounded by people all day, Yuffie is here way more often than I ever expected her to be and even right now you're here- even if you can't talk." She paused, finding it kinda stupid to be venting to a comatose person. "I do miss him. It's like he took something from me that I'll never get back. He made me feel alive... or maybe he just gave me a reason to live. Even if that reason was just trying to make him happy at least it was a reason; now what's my reason? I already saved the whole bloody world, what else am I suppose to do? I know I'm whining... life's okay. My friends are great, especially Yuf. I love the bar. I just wish I knew where he was and what he was doing. Does he even think of me? He must, especially after that night... I'm sure it meant something to him, it must've... he's probably off figuring things out so that when he comes back we can make a fresh start together," she paused, then laughed to herself shaking her head. "Man am I pathetic or what? Poor guy, forced to listen to the ramblings of a deranged woman. You're probably thinking this guy doesn't even exist, that I've just made him up, but no, Cloud Strife is as real as they get." A few moments of silence passed, then she stood up. "Well, time for bed. If you can hear me I'm sleeping here on this chair, so, well... if you need anything... she trailed off.

Tifa turned off the lamp, curled up on the chair and with one last glance towards the solitary figure on the couch, his outline visible as a result of the crackling fire, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep. Had she held her gaze on him for only a moment more she would have seen his eyes open and look at her before gently closing them again.

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Four days had passed since the unknown man had stumbled into Tifa's bar. He had yet to open his eyes or talk to her but she had a sneaking suspicion that _somebody_ had been up and wandering around in the middle of the night. Her bread seemed to be disappearing faster and faster each day, yet, she didn't mind too much because at least that meant he had enough energy to feed himself.

She had set him up in her spare bedroom in the hopes that he would begin to feel comfortable enough to talk to her, or at least acknowledge her presence. Tifa, of course, had been acknowledging him. Late at night whenever the bar closed she would go to his room with a cup of tea and talk. She realized she probably bored him to death but she had saved his life- listening was the least he could do. Tifa talked a lot about Cloud... she couldn't help it but at the same time she could almost feel herself start to...heal. Or at least... accept that she was obviously living on delusions of a fucked up version of "love".

The relationship she had with this man was also messed up. She had saved him and now... simply by listening... he was slowly putting her back together... and she didn't know who he was. She hadn't seen his face since the night he had collapsed in her bar and that night his face had been so swollen and cut up that he hardly looked human. But she had to know...

It was late at night. Tifa hadn't even bothered to open the bar tonight due to a blizzard that had swarmed the town. This happened every once in awhile but the town of Icicle Inn had its own type of communication between the houses that worked like a telephone. It was based on underground wires which ensured communication never went down, no matter how bad the storm. Even in the storm however, Tifa couldn't stop thinking about her mystery man. _That's it,_ she thought, _I have to see his face again._

Slowly and quietly she walked to his room. The lamp was still on casting a shadow on the walls but there was just enough light to reveal the figure on the bed. He was lying on his back, one arm draped over the side of the bed completely at ease. Tifa held her breath as she walked closer, hoping desperately that he was passed out for the night. Her hand trembled as she reached out and caressed his bandaged face. "Poor baby..." she murmured quietly. Tifa reached behind his head and felt around for the edge of the bandage.

She shrieked as the man's had shot up and grabbed her wrist. His eyes snapped open and stared into hers. Tifa shivered as his icy blue eyes bore into her. She tried to get away but his grip didn't budge. The staredown lasted for a few tense minutes before he relaxed his grip on her arm. She yanked her arm away and bolted from the room. Tifa didn't stop until she was downstairs and behind the bar... this way she had plenty of bottles to throw at him if he was going to pursue her.

Breathing heavily she strained her ears trying to determine whether or not he had come downstairs or not. After a few minutes of silence she began to relax. _I don't think he means me harm,_she thought. _Well, obviously he doesn't. If he did he could have murdered me in my sleep by now. Maybe it was an instinctual action... or maybe he just doesn't want me to know who he is... but why I wonder?_ Her musings were interrupted by a loud BANG! and a shrill voice.

"MOTHING FUCKING GAIA IT'S FLIPPPING COLD OUT THERE!"

Tifa shrieked for the second time that night and threw a bottle of vodka in the direction of the noise. CRASH!

"WHAT THE HELL! YOU CRAZY FUCKER WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IT'S ME!"

Tifa finally looked up and locked eyes with a _very_ pissed off Yuffie.

"Erm... sorry."

"SORRY? SORRY? YOU JUST CHUCKED A BOTTLE OF PERFECTLY GOOD VODAK AT MY FACE!"

"Yuf listen I-"

"YOU CRAZY COOT I KNEW YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE LIVED UP HERE BY YOURSELF! YOU'RE CRAZY, YOU'RE A CAT WOMAN, YOU'RE-"

"YUFFIE! Please... relax..."

Yuffie paused in her ranting as she glared at Tifa through her snow goggles. Yuffie took off her winter jacket, shaking all the snow off, and threw her glasses off on the floor. She put both hands on her hips and said,

"Well?"

Tifa gulped. Yuffie may be small, but she could certainly be intimidating. In a quick moment Tifa explained her situation. Yuffie raised her eyebrow.

"I thought you said he was practically comatose."

"Well... that's the first time I've seen him move since he collapsed." By now Yuffie has removed all of her travelling gear and was seated at the bar.

"Maybe it was just an involuntarily reaction you know? Like, like a... bad ... twitch."

"A bad twitch. Really. Something about the look in his eyes made me think he was well aware of what he was doing." Yuffie shrugged.

"Well I'm here now so don't worry. Imma ninja. Let's see him try to grab my hand." In a swift action Yuffie had dropped into stance and started doing her trademark spaztastic karate chops.

"Oh what would I do without my dear Yuffie to save me..."

"You know it!" Now that the atmosphere had lightened considerably upon Yuffie's arrival, Tifa felt her confidence rise. "Now let's go check on her guest ya? If he is awake I can give him the cure materia." Tifa nodded and the two of them made their way upstairs.

They reached the door and gently pushed it open. Yuffie walked right over to the sleeping silhouette and poked him roughly in the arm before Tifa could say anything.

"Yuffie!" But to Tifa's surprise the figure did not flinch. Yuffie poked him again, this time right in the forehead, but there was still no response. At this Tifa dragged Yuffie from the room before she could molest him any further. Once downstairs Yuffie spoke.

"Um Teef? Are you sure you didn't imagine the whole thing? You know, the whole grabbing of the arm, the mesmorizing stare..."

"No, I didn't. I know I didn't. But you're right... maybe it was one of those jerky twitch things..."

"Well it doesn't matter now. Tomorrow we will give him the cure materia and hopefully that'll perk him up. In the meantime..."

"I'm not drinking."

"Oh come on, one beer, it'll calm your nerves..."

"I'm going to bed..."

"But that's lame..."

"You have a beer. I'm going to bed."

"Well... okay. Goodnight Teef."

"Night Yuf, and thanks."

Tifa made her way upstairs and collapsed in her bed. She wasn't there for more than a moment before she fell into a deep sleep.

_Tifa heard a voice in the darkness._

"_Thank you..."._

"_For what..." she murmured back._

"_You saved me... now I must save them..."_

"_I... I don't know what you mean..."_

"_They need me... before the pass closes from the storm..."_

"_Where do I know you from..."_

"_Do not worry love... do not worry..."_

"_But I..."_

"_And know- he does not deserve your love..." As the last words faded into silence a face came into Tifa's view. Red hair... blue eyes..._

Tifa woke with a start. She knew exactly who her guest was. She bolted from her bed and ran straight towards the guest room. She ran into Yuffie who was standing outside his door.

"He's gone and he took the cure materia with him!" Yuffie said surprised.

"Yuf, Yuf listen, I know who he is, I know!" Tifa said breathless, her eyes wild with shock.

"What? How do you know? What-"

"It's Reno, from the Turks!"

"You're joking right? Reno? Really? What about Johnny? Sure he's got the same hair and the sexy bod but there's no way.."

"I know it," Tifa said with certainty. "I had this feeling the whole time like we had some history or something… some connection… " Yuffie snorted.

"Yea, a connection like 'Imma gonna kill you before you kill me' ya? I suppose if it is him it makes sense why he grabbed you like that.. was probably reaching for your throat but missed and grabbed your arm instead… I knew he was never that smart…"

"He was NOT trying to strangle me," Tifa answered hotly. "I was trying to take the bandage off his face. He probably didn't want me to recognize him.." She trailed off thinking hard. Was it really possible that for the last four days she'd been nursing a Turk back to health? Nor was he just any Turk at that.

The first time she'd seen him was a few days after she'd opened her first bar in the Slums. The Turks had been making their yearly rounds of the Slums which pretty much translated to bullying any shop owners who hadn't been paying their taxes. Tifa remembered that night well. She was the only one in the bar, since Biggs, Wedge and Jesse were out on some scouting mission with Barret, when her door opened and the four Turks walked in. Tifa had been nervous at first because all that she had known of the Turks at that time was that they did the dirty work for Shinra, kidnapping and murdering and that sort of stuff. So when she found herself alone in the bar with them she felt a little bit on edge, but that passed once she realized they weren't looking for trouble. The blonde girl, Elena, had come up to the bar and politely ordered their drinks, paid, and even left a tip. The black haired man had pulled out a deck of cards and, besides the occasional drink refill, and laughter, Tifa hardly even noticed they were there. Other than the girl and the black-haired man the only other one of the group she recognized was the bald man with glasses. She had seen them all, at one time or another, on scouting missions or at Wall Market and the like. The red-head however, sparked her curiosity.

He had appeared completely at ease with the world, with his legs slung up on a chair, his arm dangling carefree with a drink in the other. He was the only one who made enough noise to cause Tifa to glance up every once in awhile and that was due to a roaring laugh that would emit from him spontaneously. Tifa would have been lying to herself if she denied the crush she had on him at that time. There was simply something about him that made Tifa feel envious as she herself was always uptight and worrying about everything and everyone. But watching this man... he was clearly the opposite of everything she was. Ironically, this fact would be reiterated in her mind one year later when she would witness the destruction of her home, Slum and friends at the hands, nay the mere finger, of the red-head. It was that cold and heartless decision that confirmed to Tifa that Reno the Turk was absolutely nothing like herself, or any other decent human being for that matter.

"Of course he didn't want you to recognize him, hell, if either of us had recognized him his ass would have been out here faster than you could say 'Quidditch'." Tifa cocked her eyebrow and looked at Yuffie.

"Quidditch?" Yuffie shrugged.

"First thing that came to mind. Anyways is that really important right now? Really?" Tifa sighed.

"Right. Well if we leave now we can catch up to him, he couldn't of gotten too far, maybe one of the villagers saw him so we should ask-"

"Tifa are you nuts!" Yuffie exploded. "We're not going to go and follow him. That's _Reno,_ of the _Turks_ out there. Our mortal enemy. The one who has tried to kill us multiple times. The one who, well, you know… the Slums and all…"

"Yuf, I know I know. But… he's injured. I just… I can't… He's injured and he's out there in the mountains somewhere by himself with broken ribs and a broken arm and everything. He _was_ our mortal enemy… I mean, we're not exactly at war anymore with him. And if he still wanted me dead I would be by now, so obviously he doesn't care about that anymore, I think. I just... I can't... I…" Tifa trailed off helplessly, unable to justify herself any further because she honestly couldn't even convince herself why this mattered so much to her. "It's like what I said before… even if my mortal enemy showed up hurt at the door I wouldn't be able to turn them away. Well, I just can't help it. If you don't want to come that's fine, but I-"

"Oh screw you Tifa Lockhart! As if I'm going to let you go off on some wicked adventure without me. As if. Seriously. Who do'ya think I am. BAH," Yuffie finished, hands on her hips and nose up in the air as though daring her to argue. Tifa stared at her for a moment before bursting into laughter at the sight of Yuffie looking so haughty.

"Alright alright," she said giggling, "Let's get our stuff together."

"Hold on Tifa, as the one not emotionally involved here," she held up her hand to stop Tifa from protesting that statement, "I feel that I should take control of the situation and make the decisions. And first, we're going to call Reeve." Tifa looked puzzled.

"Reeve? Why?"

"Because this whole situation smells fishy. Why would a Turk show up, battered and bruised, at Icicle Inn of all places? It's too weird. Maybe he has some insight as to why Reno was up here in the first place and where he might be heading, not to mention where he came from." Tifa nodded reaching for her PHS on the table. She had to hand it to the young ninja, she could certainly be bratty and immature but when things turned serious she would do a complete 180 and still manage to surprise Tifa some times.

Tifa flipped open her PHS and quickly dialed Reeve's number.

"Hello?"

"Hi Reeve, it's me, Tifa."

"Oh, hi Tifa, it's been too long. Tell me how-"

"I'm sorry Reeve but I'm running out of time and I need your help."

"Oh for sure Tifa, what can I do?"

"Listen, have you heard anything from the Turks lately? What they've been up to, who they're employed by now, etc."

"The Turks? Well they haven't been caught yet, for one thing."

"What? What do you mean by caught yet?"

"Surely you've heard? The 'new' Shinra is attempting to clear up everything bad that was connected to it in the past. The Turks are officially 'wanted' individuals. The excuse is that they were the ones to have kidnapped the president to explain his disappearance. As you know President Rufus Shinra has not been seen since Holy's counter-attack against Meteor when Midgar was destroyed three years ago. The majority of us believe him to be dead of course, but as no body was ever recovered he is officially listed as 'MIA'. So the new head of the company pinned it on the Turks knowing that the President will never show up (which is what they want) meanwhile hoping that they can get rid of the Turks at the same time. The Turks are no longer an official sector of Shinra anymore either. There is no more training or recruitment for them and all files for their past involvement have disappeared from our records. For all intents and purposes… the Turks never officially existed and with the bounty of their heads they hope to rid them for good. So it's not really surprising that our favourite Turks, Rude, Elena, Tseng and Reno have disappeared and haven't been seen in three years."

"So the Turks have just disappeared? Surely someone has seen them in a bar or something. What about Elena? She always had such a big mouth she was constantly getting herself in trouble…"

"Sorry Tifa not a single report. If there was it would make such big news that even your town would hear about it. Is everything alright Tifa?"

"Dammit. What? Oh yes… fine. Okay. Um. Well… has there been any suspicious activity lately? What about the Northern Continent? Anything weird or strange?"

"Well… now that you mention it… I think… hold on for one second Tifa." There was a pause and then a rustling of papers. "Here. A distress call was sent from that area about 4 days ago that our radars picked up. It says here that it was either a plane or a helicopter… pilot unknown… destination unknown. I think since our radars haven't picked up anything since we've just assumed the worst and, well, with the mass rebuilding of Midgar, we haven't been able to spare any men to go on a random search and rescue mission. Not to mention the whole Northern Continent area is taboo now for many people, no offense, so it would be difficult to get volunteers anyways."

"None taken. Thanks a lot Reeve. And um, could you not mention this call to anyone? And if you could draw as much attention away from that distress call as you could that would be helpful."

"No problem Tifa. Sounds like the fewer people know what's going on the better, but you know you can trust me and if you need anything just let me know."

"I will. Thanks a lot Reeve, I appreciate that. Bye." With a click Tifa hung up her PHS. In a moment she quickly explained all that Reeve had said to Yuffie.

"You didn't hear about the bounty? Hell, even I knew about it. You guys really don't get out much up here do you?"

"Well what do you think? It seems to me like Reno was on a plane or something and it crashed somewhere in the mountains. That would explain the dire state he was in, and the distress call Reeve got."

"Okay. But where did he go now? Obviously he came here for help or something. Why would he leave without actually getting help?" Tifa closed her eyes for a moment.

"I bet he wasn't alone on the plane. Maybe he did come here for help and when he came across the Cure Materia he took it and left to go help the survivors of the crash, whoever they are." She shook her head. "He took a huge risk even coming into the city knowing about the bounty. That's why he left so sudden… he probably assumed anybody he came across who recognized him certainly wouldn't help him and instead would probably turn him in."

"Damn straight," Yuffie said from behind the bag she was stuffing sandwiches into. "I think we're packed. Are you ready? Weapons? Materia? Armour? Remember the last time we went out into those mountains? On the plus side we don't have a psychotic "I want to destroy the world" lunatic chilling in the mountain in crystallized form waiting for us to arrive just so he can pop out like a fucking pop tart and yell 'SURPRISE I'M STILL NOT DEAD' like last time. Instead we have a sexy, murderous red-head who is internally bleeding and probably won't hesitate to add two more murders on his list, but, well, at least for once in our lives we have the advantage unlike every other single fucking time we fight."

"Oh Yuffie, your optimism never ceases to amaze me."

"Shut up. Pass me that bottle of vodka will ya?" Tifa gave her a look. "What? It's for…possible… anti…germ… necessities. Oh come on we're going to need some kind of warmth out there."

"Whatever, Yuf."

11111111111111

"Alright chief, which way?" The two of them stood at a crossroads. They had travelled about an hour outside of the village before coming to the only map of the mountains, and the word "map" was pushing it. It was more like a crudely sketched treasure map scribbled by a drunken seven year. Lucky for them they had a faint idea of where they were from the last time they made the trek despite the fact they took a different route last time.

Tifa thought back and sighed, feeling grim at the memory. Their group had arrived at Icicle Inn after chasing Sephiroth through the Forgotten City after the murder of Aeries. They found the small village infiltrated by the Shinra, but managed a quick getaway on snowboards which landed them in the middle of the snow plains. It had taken them hours and hours in the cold before they had stumbled across the Hot Springs which had saved their lives as they certainly would have frozen to death. Even Nanaki had struggled with the cold despite his fur coat; he was used to the warmth of Cosmo Canyon.

"Well there's really only two options: head to the Hot Springs or head to the cabin. I'm sure that Reno is aware of both, the question is… which way would he have headed?"

"I think that the cabin makes the most sense," Yuffie said, jumping up and down on the spot trying to keep warm. "I mean, north of the cabin is the passage to the Northern Crator which is really the only place up here that makes sense for them to scout out. Plus the Hot Springs is difficult to find in clear weather and in a blizzard like this it would be practically impossible. So I say we take our chance and hope that his brains haven't frozen yet and that he made the smart move." Tifa nodded.

"Alright. Also… I don't want to jinx anything but it's kind of weird that we haven't encountered any monsters yet."

"You're right, but then again we aren't too far into the mountains. We've got to hurry though and make it to the cabin before dark… even if there are no monsters hanging around there are still the wolves." As if on cue a howl rose up in the distance causing shivers to run down Yuffie's back. She did not like wolves. With a quick check of the map they headed north towards the cabin.

As the hours wore on their pace got slower and slower as the wind and snow grew stronger.

"This is ridiculous!" Yuffie yelled over the roaring wind. Tifa put her head down and kept on moving. She remembered from her map checks that there was a small cave up ahead where they could take shelter. The weather had really slowed them down and she knew there was no way they would make it to the cabin by nightfall which was less than a half hour away. At this point the wolves weren't the only worry on Tifa's mind, rather, the inevitable temperature drop that was to occur when the sun went down was her main concern. They needed shelter and warmth fast. "Come on Yuffie!" Tifa bellowed through the wind. "We're almost there!" The wind was so loud that she didn't hear Yuffie's response, but unfortunately for Tifa, she didn't hear the wolf come up behind her either as it leapt at her with jaws open wide.


End file.
